


I Will Follow You Into The Dark

by honeybee_pioneer



Series: Free! Song AU's [9]
Category: Free!
Genre: Crying, Death, Growing Old, I love to torture these boys w h y, Love, M/M, Polyamory, Sad, Sickness, Songfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-22
Updated: 2016-08-22
Packaged: 2018-08-10 10:16:12
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,272
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7840849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honeybee_pioneer/pseuds/honeybee_pioneer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Stay?" </p><p>"Until the very end." </p><p>It was a promise they made together. A promised they intended to keep.</p>
            </blockquote>





	I Will Follow You Into The Dark

**Author's Note:**

> Song: I Will Follow You Into The Dark belongs to Death Cab
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Free!

_Love of mine_  
Someday you will die  
But I'll be close behind  
I'll follow into the dark

Makoto loved his partners dearly. The four men had been together for fifty-two years, since they were eighteen. They had each been successful in their own ways.

Haruka and Rin had made it to several Olympics, and after they retired, Haruka worked at a small coffee shop and Rin began coaching the swim team at the local high school. 

Sousuke had gone to school to become a physical therapist. He wanted to help correct others before they pushed themselves too hard, before they hurt themselves like he did. He often was called to give lectures to sports teams, warning them the dangers of overusing their muscles and body's, as well as teaching them different preventative exercises. 

Makoto had ended up as a first grade teacher. He loved teaching his students, and most who had him would say he was their favorite teacher in elementary school. On weekends, he would sometimes help to teach younger children how to swim. Life was enjoyed, and they were happy. 

However, happiness cannot last forever. 

When they were seventy, Haruka was diagnosed with pneumonia during one of the coldest winters they had ever seen. Rin, Sousuke, and Makoto did all they could for him, but with his health already starting to fail him, the doctor told them Haruka most likely did not have much time left. 

It was late one night when Haruka had practically begged to be in between the three other men. It was the tail end of winter, and Haruka had not gotten better. 

Haruka buried his face into Rin's chest, whilst Makoto rubbed his back and Sousuke held his hand, tracing small circles with his thumb. 

"Stay?" Haruka whispered softly, repeating the beginning of a promise made long ago. 

"Until the very end," the three other men chorus quietly. 

Haruka nodded and closed his eyes, letting sleep take him. Tears began to roll down Makoto's face, Rin burying his face in Haruka's hair. Sousuke's hair covered his eyes, but all of them knew he was shedding tears of his own. 

Haruka did not wake the next morning. Spring arrived that day, and the flowers outside began to bloom. 

_If Heaven and Hell decide that they both are satisfied  
_ _Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs  
_ _If there's no one beside you when your soul embarks  
_ _Then I'll follow you into the dark_

_Catholic school, as vicious as Roman rule_  
I got my knuckles bruised by a lady in black  
I held my tongue as she told me, son  
Fear is the heart of love, so I never went back

Sousuke's health began to fail him at the age of seventy-five. He was in and out of the hospital, his lungs not functioning as they should. 

Makoto and Rin tried to stay as strong as they could for him, offering small smiles and care. However, Sousuke started to become depressed when he was admitted for the last time, and was told he most likely would not be released. 

It was raining one morning whilst Makoto and Rin were visiting Sousuke. The man was sitting up in bed, reading an old book of poems. It was quiet until Sousuke began to have a coughing fit. Makoto and Rin rushed to his side, and they each took one of his hands, Rin gently patting Sousuke's back. 

"Sou," Makoto whispered, "It's okay. We'll be okay, if you need to let go." 

Rin nodded, feeling tears brim in his eyes. "We don't want you to be in pain anymore, Sousuke. It's alright, you don't have to hold on anymore." 

"...Stay?" Sousuke asked as his fit came to an end. 

"Until the very end." Makoto and Rin confirmed. 

Sousuke laid back, and smiled slightly. The first smile either man had seen in a long time. "I... can see Haru..." 

Rin brushed Sousuke's hair to the side. "Go with him. You know he hates waiting..." 

"We love you very much. And tell Haru-chan we love him too." Makoto said softly. 

Sousuke nodded, and with a few more shuddering breaths, his eyes closed. After a moment, Rin let out a heartbreaking sob, and Makoto held him close as his own tears started to fall. 

"Don't leave, Makoto!" Rin cried into his shoulder, "I can't lose you too!" 

Makoto pet his head gently. "I won't leave, I promise. No matter what, I will stay with you..." 

_If Heaven and Hell decide that they both are satisfied  
_ _Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs  
_ _If there's no one beside yo when your soul embarks  
_ _Then I'll follow you into the dark_

_You and me have seen everything to see_  
From Bangkok to Calgary  
The soles of your shoes are all worn down  
The time for sleep is now  
It's nothing to cry about  
Cause we'll hold each other soon  
The blackest of rooms

They're eighty when Rin began to slow down. He became tired easily, and he quickly became bed-bound. He spent his days looking through the photo albums, clinging to memories of the past. 

Makoto sat next to Rin most of the time, holding him close. He wanted to make things as comfortable as possible for his last remaining partner. 

Rin began to cry suddenly one day, and Makoto held him tight. 

"What's wrong, Rin?" Makoto asked softly. 

"I don't want to die, Mako..." Rin cried, "It's not fair to you. I don't want to leave you all on your own!" 

Makoto kisses his forehead. "Rinrin, I promised, didn't I? That I'd stay? I'll be alright. I don't want you to feel like you have to stay just because of me." 

Rin let out and soft breath. "Hold me, Makoto?" 

"Of course." 

"Stay?" 

Makoto swallowed the lump in his throat. "Until the very end." 

Much like Haruka's passing, Rin does not wake the next morning.

_If Heaven and Hell decide that they both are satisfied  
_ _Illuminate the no's on their vacancy signs  
_ _If there's no one beside yo when your soul embarks  
_ _Then I'll follow you into the dark_

Makoto is ninety when he is being driven to the graveyard. Two years after Rin's passing, Makoto was forced to move in with one of his great-nieces, Ran's granddaughter due to the beginning downfall of his health. His great-niece pulled into the cemetery, and helped Makoto out of the car. He got himself over to the plot where his three partners were buried, three out of four names given a date of death under the date of birth. 

He felt a warm breeze pass through the air, and he allowed himself to lay on the ground, feeling content. 

"Stay?" he whispered to the winds. 

 _"Until the very end,"_ they seemed to say. 

He closed his eyes, and his breathing slowed. He heard someone calling for him, but soon it was quiet. 

He woke in a strange room. It was dimly lit, and there was a door at the end of a long hallway. He stood carefully, and he noticed his skin was no longer wrinkled, and the strands of hair that fell in front of his face were their once olive brown color again. He cautiously opened the door, and a light filled the room. 

When he opened his eyes again he adjusted to the brightness of the light. Before him stood Haruka, Sousuke, and Rin. His eyes filled with tears, and with a sob of relief, he ran to them. They four men huddled close together, hugging and crying. They too each others hands, and walked together towards eternity. 

_I'll follow you into the dark_

 

 

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought! (I may or may not have cried while writing this. I̶ ̶t̶o̶t̶a̶l̶l̶y̶ ̶c̶r̶i̶e̶d̶ ̶w̶h̶i̶l̶e̶ ̶w̶r̶i̶t̶i̶n̶g̶ ̶t̶h̶i̶s̶)


End file.
